Finance, Office of the Director of / Office of Administrative Review

The mission of the Office of Administrative Review (OAR) is to provide citizens of Philadelphia with a consistent appeal process and high-quality adjudication, while reducing the incidence and cost of disputes between citizens and operating departments. OAR has three principal functions; review of administrative cases; administration of the adjudication process; and financial management of disputed cases.

Agency History

On 1 September 1995, Mayor Edward G. Rendell, under Executive Order 4-95, consolidated the duties of the Bureau of Administrative Adjudication (BAA) and the Tax Review Board (TRB) under a newly-created Office of Administrative Review (OAR), and established OAR as a single point of contact for the resolution of all nonjudicial disputes regarding City taxes, charges, fees, and fines. All disputes are screened for eligibility, referred to the appropriate department or agency as an initial step towards resolution, tracked, and, if a settlement with the department cannot be reached, referred for a hearing at the BAA or TRB.